Sentient Foundation Launches to Keep AGI Open-Source and Aligned with Humanity

A new nonprofit organization has emerged with an ambitious mission: ensuring that Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) remains open-source, decentralized, and aligned with humanity's interests rather than corporate profits. The Sentient Foundation, officially launched on February 19, 2026, in Singapore, aims to prevent the monopolization of AGI technology by a handful of powerful corporations. ## The Challenge of Corporate-Controlled AGI Currently, the world's most powerful AI models—including ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok, and Claude—are proprietary systems owned by private companies. The Sentient Foundation argues that this concentration of power poses significant risks as AI systems approach general intelligence. "Just as Linux became the cornerstone of the open internet, we believe open-source AGI will become the cornerstone of human progress," said Sachi Kamiya, Director of Venture Capital and Growth at the foundation. The organization points to recent successes in open-source AI, such as DeepSeek and Qwen, which have demonstrated that open models can rival their closed-source counterparts in capability and performance. These examples prove that AGI development need not be confined to corporate research labs with exclusive access. ## A Comprehensive Approach to Open AGI The Sentient Foundation has outlined five core responsibilities to guide its mission. First, it will champion alignment and safety, establishing ethical standards and transparency requirements for AGI systems. Second, the foundation will foster global research collaboration by partnering with AI researchers, governments, and academic institutions worldwide. Third, it plans to provide substantial support for open-source developers and institutions through funding and resources. Fourth, the foundation will work to establish inclusive governance frameworks that ensure AGI development benefits all of humanity, not just shareholders. Finally, it will engage in public advocacy, including hosting events like the Open AGI Summit to build awareness and coalition support. ## Technical Innovation Through Sentient Labs Working in tandem with the foundation is Sentient Labs, a research organization focused on technical AGI development. Sentient Labs is developing frameworks like ROMA and models like Dobby, concentrating on critical areas such as inference optimization, multi-agent coordination, and value alignment. While Sentient Labs handles the technical innovation, the Sentient Foundation serves as the neutral guardian ensuring these efforts align with open-source principles and human values. ## Drawing Inspiration from Open-Source Success Stories The foundation's vision draws heavily from the success of previous open-source movements. Linux transformed operating systems, Apache revolutionized web servers, and Android democratized mobile computing. Each of these projects demonstrated that open collaboration could create technology that rivals or surpasses proprietary alternatives while remaining accessible to all. The Sentient Foundation believes AGI represents an even more critical juncture. As AI systems approach human-level general intelligence, the question of who controls this technology becomes paramount. An AGI monopolized by corporations could prioritize profit maximization over societal well-being, potentially leading to outcomes misaligned with broader human interests. ## A Call for Global Collaboration The foundation is actively inviting AI researchers, developers, policymakers, and institutions to join its mission. Through global conferences, community initiatives, and collaborative research programs, it aims to build a diverse coalition committed to keeping AGI transparent, decentralized, and aligned with human values. As the race toward AGI accelerates, the Sentient Foundation represents a crucial counterbalance to purely commercial development efforts, advocating for a future where humanity's most transformative technology remains a shared resource rather than a proprietary asset.